No Light, No Light
by forbesalvatores
Summary: What happens when four friends get sucked into 'The Vampire Diaries? That's one thing they're asking themselves. Watch as Wren and Tessa Fields, Carter Wilson, and Aaron Smith try their hardest to keep their secret from the world of vampires, werewolves, witches, hybrids, and even doppelgangers. Can they go along with the plot, or will they have to interfere?
1. Prologue

_**Tessa's POV**_

"Okay so let's see..." I started, counting my bags that piled in the trunk of my friend, Aaron's, car. We were all getting ready for our end of summer road trip. It usually lasted for two days and most of the time would have an amazing time. It was just going to be me, my sister Wren, and our two friends Carter and Aaron. I suddenly gasped when I noticed one of my bags was missing. "Wren!" I shouted.

I heard footsteps on the gravel behind me. It was my fraternal twin Wren with the bag in hand. "I don't know why you need all this damn stuff, Tess. It's just two days." Wren and I were total opposites. I was a lot more girlier than her and she just didn't understand that I did need two bags and two suitcases for the trip. What if a shirt got ruined? Or my pants were torn to shreds by a rabid dog when walking through a small town? Okay, so maybe I'm exaggerating. I just can't seem to care.

My hands grasped the bag, pulling it from my sisters hands. "I can bring as much as I want. I'm paying for the gas."

"No, you're not." Aaron finally made his appearance as he walked out my front door. He walked down the stairs and laughed. "Unless, of course, you're offering to." He was going to be driving for at least five hours, maybe more, which meant he was paying for the gas. Plus it was his car.

I chose to ignore him and turned back to the open trunk. I placed my bag on top of the others. "So are we picking up Carter tonight at work?" Carter was my feisty blonde friend that worked a night shift at a diner over the summer. It surprisingly made good money. She managed to earn six hundred dollars by last week. She tells me about how she's going to make lots of cash and open up a art studio when she graduates from college.

"Yep." Wren spoke up, now holding something in her hands. "Look what I have."

My eyes met the black box in her hands. It was our portable DVD player. Excitement rose inside me. "Oh my god!" Squealing, I took it from my sister as her and I fangirled over it. How could I forget? We were planning on catching up on our all time favorite TV show 'The Vampire Diaries' before the third season premieres. It was a few weeks until then so we had enough time to watch season one and two.

"You guys are such girls." Aaron ran a hand through his dark blonde hair in laughter. "Come on, it's almost midnight and we have to pick up Carter."

"That's because we are girls." I shouted. Wren and I slipped into the back seat and put our headphones into the DVD player. We watched the screen until we made it to the diner.

* * *

_**Carter's POV**_

"No, sir, we do not serve breakfast at this time." I told the man across from me for the millionth time. I was about ready to knock his teeth down his throat. All he wanted was breakfast and he was making a huge deal about it. Does he not understand that breakfast starts at seven and ends at noon? Obviously not.

He let out a aggravated sigh. "It's 12 in the _morning_, sweetheart."

Okay, now he did it. I was about to pour all the coffee in the mug in my hands all over his smug little face when I saw Aaron walk in. Thank god. I wiped the anger from my face and replaced it with happiness. He walked up and sat down beside the man I was going to assault with coffee on a stool and smiled.

"Finally, you're here." I placed the pot of coffee onto the counter. After doing so I took my apron off and threw onto the ground. I hurried to make myself presentable by smoothing my straight blonde hair down and my white t-shirt of wrinkles.

Aaron gave me a concerned look. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I snarled at him, remembering the man sitting next to him. I gave him one hell of a glare before turning my attention back to my friend. "Let's just say people need to learn to be polite."

He simply nodded, getting off the stool and coming around to meet me. "Where's your stuff?" I pointed back towards another room. "I'll get it. Wren and Tess are waiting for you in the car." I gave him a look that said thank you.

By the time I got to the car, Aaron had my stuff in the trunk and had his keys in the ignition. My gaze fell to the two girls in the back that had their eyes glued to a screen. I laughed. They were probably watching 'The Vampire Diaries'. Wren had an obsession with Damon, while Tess had an obsession with Stefan. I could care less for the two characters. Mostly because I wasn't as crazy over it as they were. I had only watched the first two seasons after being forced to sit down for almost seven days straight. It was a good show, sure, but it wasn't anything to get obsessed about. But I know if I said that to my friends, they'd object and probably throw their collection of the show at me.

"How many times do they have to watch that to actually stop watching it?" Aaron asked from the driver seat. He had his eyes on the road, but I knew he was talking to me.

"I have no clue." I took a hair tie from my wrist and began pulling my hair into a ponytail. It was going to be a long morning until we got to Richmond so I got my phone from my jean pocket and started reading a book on Kindle. It was only minutes until my eyes fluttered shut, leaving me in a dreamy state.

I woke up to the sound of Aaron cursing. The F-bomb here, another one there. I sat upright in my seat to see that Aaron was outside of the car looking under its hood. Oh no. Hopefully we weren't stranded in the middle of nowhere. Hurriedly, I put my phone down that was tightly in my hands onto the dashboard and got out. "What the hell, Aaron?"

"Don't start, Carter."

Smoke was coming from the engine. Yep, we were defiantly stranded. "Nice going."

Aaron shot me an annoyed look before going back to investigating. He was really good at fixing up cars. Only because his father owned a auto body back home. He started working there at a young age and stopped last year. Aaron was eighteen now and was making his own choices. He didn't want to work there anymore.

I decided to leave him be which I turned on my heels to see we were surrounded by trees. A few feet away and I'd be standing in the middle of a forest. I looked up at the full moon shining brightly overhead. My smile grew and I had to take a picture for a muse for a painting I could do later. My feet froze in place as I heard a low growling sound coming for the woods. All that was heard was the pounding of my heartbeat. "A-Aaron?"

"What?!" I know he didn't turn to look at me as bright eyes shown through the foliage. My breathing grew rapid as I finally got enough courage to run for the car.

"Aaron run!" I screamed before hopping back inside the Nissan Hybrid. The door slammed shut, making Wren and Tessa groan in frustration.

"Keep it down!" Wren hissed.

"Yeah!" Tessa added.

Aaron was still out there, looking at the engine as if I hadn't screamed for him to run. _What an idiot_, I thought. There was an animal out there and he could be chewed to bits and pieces. Just the thought of that makes me want to double over.

My hands clicked the button to put down my window. "Aaron, get back in here!" He still wasn't listening. "Aaron! I swear to god if you don't get in here I'll-" I never finished the statement because I heard yet another growl. Only this time it sounded like it was coming from farther away.

I heard Tessa in the back let out a gasp. I turned around to see her with the DVD player in hand. "What now?" I asked.

"What did you do with my DVD?" Tessa asked furiously. The player was empty, with no signs that there was even anything in it to begin with.

I lifted my hands defensively. "I didn't touch it. None of us did." Although it did bother me some. I saw them watch it - it was clearly in there a few hours ago. "Did one of you put it away before sleeping?"

"No!" Tessa let out a sigh, running a hand through her brown locks. "We fell asleep watching it. It wasn't like we put it away." I could tell this was bothering her, but she was always a little over dramatic about the smallest things. Even the case was gone too. _Hmmm..._ I wondered for a moment before giving up. My mouth opened, but Aaron had the door open in a second.

"The engine is completely destroyed. It looks like we have to walk to the next town over." He grabbed the map from the center console. "But there isn't anywhere around her for miles...it'd take hours to get anywhere."

_Fan-fucking-tastic. _Just what I needed; another grueling walk. I take a walk every morning, but not one that wastes hours of my time. "How far do you think until we get somewhere?" I replied, looking up at the car ceiling in annoyance.

"Umm..." Aaron let out a humorless laugh. "We're sort of in a huge wooded area with no sign of any towns."

This time I saw Wren wake up, letting out a yawn and stretching her limbs. "Where are we?" She asked suddenly after looking outside her window. "This isn't Richmond."

_Thank you, Captain Obvious. _I decided not to say that since I really wasn't in the mood for arguing. "We have to walk to the nearest town."

"Why don't we just call a tow truck?" Wren furrowed her brow, ignoring out looks of protest, and took her phone from her jean jacket pocket. "You've got to be kidding me!" She whined. "There's no service."

I bit my lip. This was getting way out too of hand; no service, an animal out there that will maul us to death, and now we have to walk for hours just to get somewhere. "Okay, all we have to do is just walk straight down that road and we'll be fine." I rolled up my window and got out of the car. No animal in sight. Aaron opened the trunk and got his bags. Which him, Wren, and I only brought a minimum of two bags. I grabbed my backpack, pulled it on my shoulders, and my rolling suitcase. Everyone else did the same. Except Tessa had small problem.

"I am not leaving all my stuff here." Tessa crossed her arms.

"Just take what you can." Wren fixed her dark brown curly shoulder length hair so it was to one side as she stated this. "Once we get somewhere, we'll be able to call a tow truck, and get your stuff back."

Tessa waited about two minutes before grabbing two of her bags. She slung one over her shoulder and carried the other in her hand. Her lips turned into a scowl. I tried to stop myself from laughing as we headed down the road.

_**Wren's POV**_

I have no clue how long we've been walking. All I know was that it was tiring me. Tessa let out a complaint here and there, while Aaron and Carter walked ahead of us - deep in a conversation. Every so often I would hear a twig snapping from the forest beside me. It was starting to creep me out. I hadn't noticed Tessa started a conversation with me. She must've been talking for awhile before I heard her now.

"...so now I have to buy a whole new DVD set. I mean seriously, though, 'The Vampire Diaries' completely disappeared as if it never existed. I think I'm going crazy." Tessa mentioned. "Maybe you should start an intervention. You know, for our addiction. We can't get enough of this show and I threw a fit over the show going missing. But that's not what really makes me confused or mad - it's the fact that it disappeared and nobody knows what happened to it. Weird, right?"

I stopped walking as she said this. It really _was _weird. "Yeah, that's pretty crazy." I pursed my lips in thought. What could this possibly mean. Yeah, it was just a DVD, but it was strange.

Tessa and I continued to stare at each other as we heard Carter gasp. "Guys!"

Both of us turned to see her staring up at a town sign. All four of us were dumbstruck...No...it couldn't be...

But it is.

I heard Aaron read off the sign in wonder. "Welcome to Mystic Falls."


	2. Pilot Part 1

_**Carter's POV**_

"What the hell?" I screamed, staring at the sign in amazement. This was getting really weird. I turned back to see Wren and Tessa squealing like idiots with huge grins on their faces. "Why are you guys doing that? Don't you see we're stuck here in like another weird dimension thing?" I couldn't figure out what to call it. My eyes landed on Aaron. "What happened while we were asleep?" I saw him hesitate. "Aaron..."

"Okay, something did happen, but I didn't want to mention it before because I thought it didn't matter." He crossed his muscular arms across his chest before continuing. "We were driving down the road and it had been at least five hours since you all fell asleep. I had the music up, but not too loud, when it turned off on its own. Then the wind outside started picking up. It was really fast and hard wind...that's when I pulled the car over. The wind stopped and I went to turn the car on, but it didn't budge." Aaron noticed the disapproving look I gave him and gritted his teeth. "It's not my fault, Carter. I went outside and checked under the hood and that's when you woke up." He turned around so his back was facing me. It was obvious he was angry with me.

"Okay...so we're stuck here." I finally managed to get out after Aaron's story. "Let's just go into town and find somewhere to stay. We'll deal with everything in the morning." I grabbed the handle of my rolling suitcase, pulling it behind me as I crossed the town line.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Aaron asked.

I was about to say something when Tessa beat me to it. "Of course it is!" She was still smiling, fixing the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "Maybe we'll see Stefan..." Tessa said dreamily.

"We're not staying here. The second we get to town and get some rest, we'll have to look for a way back home." I said, taking charge. One of us had to be the leader here and I happily obliged.

The sisters frowned at me. If they wanted to stay, by all means they can stay. I just won't. I'll be pleased to take a one way ticket out of here. "So are you just going to stand there or are we going to find a motel?"

* * *

_**Wren's POV **_

By the time we got into town, the sun was already up. I squinted my eyes at it as I took in my surroundings. It was really Mystic Falls. Maybe this was all a big dream, I just hoped it lasted a lifetime. Tessa was grinning beside me and I know she was thinking the same thing. I know that I should probably be worried, but I'm not. I really didn't have _that _exciting of a life back home. So this could be a fresh start for me...and maybe Carter if she learned to lighten up a bit. She deserves to be happy. I looked over at my blonde friend as she stood feet away from me. Tessa, Aaron, and I all know what Carter has went through in her life. From her little sister dying to her older one running away. It was just Carter and a alcoholic father with no remorse for no one. I hated her Dad. He was a business man, but when he took off that suit and tie he turned into a different person.

"You coming?" I had noticed I hadn't been paying attention to what we were doing when Tess got me back to reality.

I nodded quickly, following the three as they made their way into the Mystic Grill. It must be weird for the residents to see four hitchhikers walk into their town. I'm sure it wouldn't matter since this was one of the supernatural hotspots in the world. I looked around and didn't see anyone familiar until my eyes landed on a woman sitting at the bar with a mug in her hands - Mrs. Lockwood.

"Guys." I got their attention by tapping their shoulders. "Look...there's Mrs. Lockwood. Maybe she can tell us where the closest motel is." I said with hope in my eyes. I needed a hot shower - pronto- and some shuteye. They all nodded at my suggestion and soon I was making my way towards the mayors wife. "Um, excuse me?"

Mrs. Lockwood placed her coffee onto the bar and looked at me. "Yes?"

"Would you happen to know the closest motel? You see my friends and I have been walking for hours because our car broke down and we needed some place to stay until we find out what's going on." I gave her my most polite smile I could render.

She looked as if she was debating on telling me anything. After a few minutes she spoke up. "There are no motels around here, but there is a boarding house on the outskirts of town." Carol took her phone from her purse and started dialing a number. "I'll be right back."

I watched as she disappeared around a corner. _Okay..._

"So is there any place for us?" Tessa yawned.

"I think she's contacting the boarding house." Even the thought of being close to Damon Salvatore sent shivers down my spine. Tessa flashed me a grin before turning towards Carol, who now looked pleased with something.

"You're lucky Zach has tons of extra rooms. He said he'd be happy to let you stay there for however long you need." Carol flashed a smile. "Enjoy your stay."

Carter cringed after the older woman left. "I never liked her."

"Does anybody?" I ask, laughing. We grabbed our things and made our way for the door.

* * *

We all stopped to stare at the giant door in front of us. This was it. We were going to be staying the the Salvatore boarding house for God knows how long. I was shaking with excitement and nervousness. To be honest, at first it sounded like a good idea, but then I realized that this is _'The Vampire Diaries'. _Meaning people get killed every minute no matter what. And now we had to stay with the Salvatore brothers even though Damon didn't show up until a few episodes into the first season. I sort of hated season one Damon, how he used Caroline and killed all those innocent people. Oh, man. What was I getting myself into?

Carter knocked on the door as we all waited for someone to open up. Finally it did and I heard Tessa suck in a breath. Stefan was standing there, taken aback by us. His shocked expression quickly vanished when Zach came up from behind him. "You must be them." Zach said, letting us inside. "I'm Zach and this is my..." He pointed to Stefan, thinking for a moment.

"Nephew." Stefan finished for him. "I'm Stefan." He smiled at all of us but his gaze lingered on my sister more.

"I'm Wren and this is my fraternal twin Tessa, my best friends Aaron and Carter." I pointed to each one of us. "I hope we're not bothering you with us staying here."

Zach sighed. "Not at all. There's tons of rooms upstairs for you four to choose from and I'm sure Stefan here will help you enroll at school. You're all juniors right?" We all nodded. "Great. That means Stefan and you all will be attending together."

I nodded my head. I looked over to see Tessa marveling at the house. It was huge. Everything was like an antique and I fought the urge to sit down on the couch. I didn't want to ruin anything. Zach left in a hurry, leaving us with Stefan.

"Hi." Tessa said, holding her hand out with a huge smile on her face.

Stefan took it and shook it. Their hands stayed together for a few moments before I broke the silence. "So...what about the rooms?"

"Oh, you guys can just go upstairs and choose one. It doesn't really matter." He said. "We have about two hours until school so that's enough time for you guys to get settled in."

_Awesome, _I thought sarcastically before grabbing my bags.

* * *

_**Carter's POV **_

The room I chose was large with pale yellow walls and hardwood floors. A simple bed leaned against the wall with a white bed frame/headboard topping it off with white silk sheets accompanied by a bedside table with a lamp and clock. I smiled as I made my way over to a desk that was right beside the door when entering. Placing my bags on top of it, I noticed there was also a closet and joined bathroom. I didn't know how long we'd be staying, but I knew it'd be for quite some time no matter how much I hated the idea.

After putting everything away in the correct places, I sat down at the white wooden desk and opened my laptop that I, thankfully, decided to pack. I tried logging onto my Facebook, but found that it never existed. Oh well, I was never on it anyway.

I looked over at the backpack sitting on the bed and sighed. School...back home I loved it, actually. I loved to walk in and sit down to learn. That's weird to say, but I'd rather be in a building for eight hours with annoying air heads than be at home. Life wasn't always hard for me. I used to be part of a picture perfect family that everyone envied. It wasn't until my mom died that things started going downhill. My father turned to alcohol to cope, while my older sister turned to drugs. My little sister and I managed to survive through it - well, at least _I _did. I tugged at the silver circular locket around my neck. It was the last thing I had left of my sister before she disappeared. Unlike her, my youngest one died at the age of seven. I don't talk about it unless I _really_ trust someone. Which the only people I can trust are those who are going through this journey with me.

Tears built behind my eyes and I quickly blinked when Aaron walked into the room. "Hey, you coming?"

I simply nodded, shutting my laptop and grabbing the brown leather backpack. We walked downstairs to meet with Tessa, Wren, and Stefan. Tessa and Stefan were in a deep conversation about something I couldn't muster. I noticed that everybody decided to change into new clothes. I, on the other hand, forgot.

Wren wore dark jeans and a t-shirt paired with a black leather jacket and sneakers. While Tessa wore a denim skirt and jacket with flats and a tank top. I looked down at myself and noticed I was still in my light wash skinny jeans, white v-neck, and converse. Really fancy.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

The four of us stood outside the administration office as Stefan took care of our schedules. I looked down at my nails in boredom when I heard two familiar voices. It was Elena and Bonnie.

The two girls stopped by the administration door beside us, staring at Stefan. "Hold up, who's this?" Bonnie asked, stopping Elena as her eyes were glued to him.

"All I see is back." Elena added.

"That's a hot back." Elena chuckled at Bonnie as she said this. "I'm sensing Seattle...and he plays the guitar."

Elena laughed. "You're really going to run this whole psychic thing into the ground, huh?" Bonnie nodded in reply. Elena's eyes drifted to us before finally taking off after her brother towards the bathrooms.

Stefan soon came out of the office with our schedules in hand. Bonnie looked at him in shock. She gave us a small smile before leaving. "Here." He handed each one of us a paper. I learned that we all had History together, along with Science. Those were our first two periods. My third was Math and fourth was English before heading off to lunch afterwards.

The bell rung, signaling the first period of the day.

* * *

"Once our home state Virginia joined the Confederacy in 1861, it created a tremendous amount of tension in the state." Mr. Tanner, our History teacher, taught us. Everything he said was going in one ear and out the other.

I subtly leaned on my hand to look back at Stefan who sat only a few seats away. He was staring at me and I found myself blushing. I looked away, keeping my eyes on Mr. Tanner. That's when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket.

**Wren: **_Hottie staring u. ;)_

Putting my phone back into my pocket, I smiled back down at my notes and began writing.

* * *

Lunch came and I found myself sitting with Wren, Aaron, and Carter in the cafeteria. I was gnawing on a french fry when Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie joined us. They sat across from us. Each of them sharing smiles with us. "Hey there!" Caroline said in a bubbly voice. "I'm Caroline and this is Elena and Bonnie."

Caroline was one of my favorite characters in the show besides Stefan. I loved her personality and felt as though we'd be great friends. "Hi. I'm Tessa and these are my friends."

"Oh, I know." Caroline said. "And you're Wren...you're Carter...and you're Aaron." She pointed at each of them. "I got that all through third and forth period. Along with getting to know about that new hot guy Stefan." She gushed as she began taking food out of a paper back.

"Don't mind Caroline...she's usually like this." Elena laughed. "So, are you guys from around here?"

I shook my head. "No we're actually from a town on the Virginia state line."

Elena furrowed her brow. "Oh...so what made you come to Mystic Falls?"

"Funny story, really we-" I was almost going to finishing my sentence when Carter kicked me lightly under the table. She gave me a look. "...um...we sort of moved here after each of our parents died." Wow, what a lame lie.

Bonnie raised a brow. "_All_ of your parents died?"

"Uh...no. Actually Carter's did, and she decided to visit some family here and she convinced us to come along with her only to find out that they weren't really here so now we're stuck in Mystic Falls. We live in the boarding house now."

A look of sadness flashed in Carter's eyes. Well, it was partially true. Out of all of us, she lost her mother. It would be a lie that could hold us over until we found out what to do about this whole situation.

"I'm sorry." Elena said, staring at the lunch table. It probably reminded her of her own parents.

"It's fine...it happened awhile ago. I hardly remember it." Carter told the girl. Awkwardness filled the air as we stayed quiet. I finished my food as soon as the bell rang. I grabbed my stuff and was ready to endure the day ahead of me.

* * *

**Author's Not****e: Hey guys, so I forgot to add an authors note in the last chapter and decided to ask you guys if I should continue this story? I do have big things in mind for this story and would love to share it with the public, but if nobody's interested they I won't keep posting. And I've decided to post episodes by parts _and_ just all together in one chapter. It'd be great if you favorite, follow, or review if you like this story so far c:**


	3. Pilot Part 2

**_Carter's_ **_**POV**_

I looked over at Tessa as she rummaged through her purse to get some change from her wallet. Her, Wren, and I had agreed to get out of the house and to hang out at the Mystic Grill. It was one of the most, and only, popular hangouts in town and we just had to check it out. Bonnie and Matt were sitting at a nearby table and I knew they were talking about Elena. Caroline and Tyler were off by the pole table, with Tyler looking bored with what the bubbly blonde was saying. Aaron decided not to come tonight, as he was going to try and figure out how to get the car back.

"Okay, so what's the plan?" Wren asked after the waitress left. "We can't just walk around and act like nothing's going on."

"No, that's exactly what we're going to do." I said softly. "Nothing happened, okay? We're just four friends whose car broke down and our families decided to not send a search party out to look for us."

"And how long do you think that excuse is going to work?" Tessa spoke up. Her mood had changed through the day from being extremely happy, to being much more serious with our situation. "Of course our parents would look for us, Carter. They're not heartless."

"Our parents don't even exist anymore while we're here." Wren kept moving the straw in her glass of soda around. "Who knows what's happening in our world at this very moment."

I still had to adjust to that feeling - the feeling of not knowing anything of my past life. Did I even have a past here? Probably, but none of us would remember it. "We do have parents here, we have to. Maybe they're dead, but what do we know?"

"I don't know." Tessa bit her lip, picking at the white polish coating her nails. Her brown eyes suddenly brightened with an idea. "Oh I know! Let's just tell people that we have no family left and that our family is us; you, Wren, Aaron, and I. Of course me and Wren would be the obvious biological part." You could tell they were sisters even if they didn't look identical. Both having tan skin and dark brown hair with glowing chocolate brown eyes, anybody could spot them and assume it.

Usually people mistook Aaron and I as siblings. It was weird because we looked nothing alike. It could've been because we both had a shade of blonde hair and blue eyes. Although I already had siblings; two sisters - one older, one younger. Both were gone by now though. My older sister started getting into drugs after my mom died which caused her to rebel and go missing while my other sister died sometime after turning six. The last thing I had of them was their picture in the locket around my neck. Instinctively, my hand grasped it and played with it until I noticed someone staring at me out of the corner of my eye. It was Tyler Lockwood. It wouldn't surprise me.

He was just looking at me as if I was a foreign thing to him. Tyler had a pole stick in hand and was still ignoring Caroline. "Got a staring problem?" I yelled over at him, causing his eyes to leave mine and go back to his game. _D-bag_. Never once have I liked him.

"I think Carter has an admirer." Wren cooed in a sing-song voice.

"Shut up." I stated, throwing a fry in her direction.

* * *

_**Third Person POV**_

It was late at night and Stefan was pulling a shirt over his head when he heard his door open. As expected, Zach came walking into the room with disapproval on his face. "You promised." He said, holding up a newspaper.

Stefan took it, staring at the big bold header. 'Bodies mutilated by animal'. "This was an animal attack." Stefan stated, handing the newspaper back to his uncle.

"Don't give me that. I know the game: you tear them up enough that they always expect an animal attack. You said you had it under control." Zach's voice rose, but quickly lowered it in fear of the four other people in the house hearing their argument.

"And I do."

"Please Uncle Stefan, Mystic Falls is a different place now. It's been quiet for years. But there are people who still remember...and you being here it's just going to start things up."

"It's not my intention."

"Then what is? Why did you come back after all this time, why now?" Zach questioned.

Stefan frowned. "I don't have to explain myself."

Speaking softly, Zach continued. "I know you can't change who you are, but you don't belong here anymore."

Stefan heard these words and stared at the ground. "Then where do I belong?"

"I can't tell you what to do..." Zach placed the newspaper down. "...but coming back here was a mistake."

The vampire took those words in, feeling regretful. He didn't know what else to do but got to a cabinet and open it up. It was filled with journals which he chose one sitting next to others that read '2005, '2002', '1993', and so on and so forth. Opening it up slowly, Stefan folded the cover back to gaze down at a picture with three girls sitting in it. All three of them had brown hair, brown eyes, and beautiful features to compliment them. His thumb ghosted over the one on the farthest right. Looking down at the corner he saw their names and date. Savannah, Katherine, and Celina Pierce; 1864.

* * *

_**Aaron's POV**_

"The Battle of Willow Creek took place right at the end of the war in our very own Mystic Falls." Mr. Tanner began the lecture with a cold expression on his face. I couldn't help but lean back to make myself comfortable. I wasn't going to take notes like expected, it just wasn't my thing. "How many casualties resulted in it?" The teacher said, looking at Bonnie Bennett who sat at my right. She was doodling in a notebook, obviously having the same idea in mind as I did. "Ms. Bennett?"

"Uh..." Bonnie said after masking her surprised state. "a lot?" This caused me to chuckle. "I'm not sure, like a whole lot."

"Cute becomes dumb in an instant, Miss. Bennett." Tanner looked irritated with her response as his eyes landed on Matt. "Mr. Donovan, if you'd like to take this opportunity to overcome your embedded jock stereotype."

Nonchalantly, Matt replied with a few laughs coming from kids around him. "It's okay, Mr. Tanner, I'm cool with it."

"Elena, surely you can enlighten us with one of the towns most significantly historical events?"

Elena shook her head. "I'm sorry...I-I don't know."

"I was willing to be lenient last year for obvious reasons, Elena, but the personal excuses ended with summer break." Tanner said. I couldn't help but notice the sadness on Elena's face. Unlike my friends, I wouldn't know what those personal reasons are because I'd never watched the show. _What a douche this teacher was._

"346 casualties." This came from a voice in the back of the room that I recognized was Stefan's. Along with everyone else, I turned my head towards him. "Unless you're counting local civilians."

Mr. Tanner looked shocked with the others. "That's correct...Mister...?"

"Salvatore."

"Salvatore. Any relation to the original settlers here in Mystic Falls?"

Stefan hesitated. "Distant."

"Well very good...Except of course there were no civilian casualties in the battle." Mr. Tanner finished, planning on going back to his desk.

"Actually there were, uh, 27, sir." The vampire interrupted. He just never stopped did he? "Confederate soldiers fired on the church, leaving it to be housing weapons - they were wrong. It's a night of great loss. The founders archives are stored in civil hall if you'd like to brush up on your facts."

I looked over at Tessa. She was shocked to see that Stefan had talked back to Mr. Tanner. I tried my hardest not to laugh at a teacher being wrong and a student being right.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

"I can't believe we're at the bonfire party!" I squealed, unable to hold back my excitement. I was walking along with Carter as we made our way to the drinks. Wren and Aaron would be here later, but both of us wanted to come earlier just to get the inside scoop on all the drama that I already know of. But I knew I had to be more mature about the situation and play along. I knew nothing and I didn't want to ever tell anybody where we were from. I know that I almost slipped up yesterday, but I've managed to keep my mouth shut.

Carter just laughed and was about to grab a beer when Tyler handed her one. He just came out of nowhere and I had to hold back a giggle as Carter shot him a look. Her eyes narrowed in disgust. "What the hell do you want?"

"To say hey." Tyler said, pushing the unopened beer into her hand. I bit my lip to keep from smiling. _Aw, he must like her. _Though I knew he would have a thing for Caroline in the near future.

"Hey." Carter said with irritation laced in her voice. She took the bottle and made a run for it when I grabbed her arm, urging her to stay and spark a conversation with him. Tyler wasn't that bad. At least, not in the second season. "No, Tess." She ground out through gritted teeth. I didn't move my arm and looked back at Tyler.

"Oh, come on. Just talk to him. He's not _that_ bad."

"Fine." My blonde friend yanked her arm from my grasp, turning around. I turned around too since I planned to leave them be when I hit a hard chest. Looking up I saw Stefan. "Stefan." I said breathlessly.

"Hey." He smiled down at me and I flushed a deep red. Without looking back at Carter, I left her there so I could have some alone time with Stefan.

* * *

**_Wren's POV_**

It was at least an hour or so before Aaron and I got to the party. We were stuck at the boarding house on the phone with the tow company. We managed to get Aaron's car back within a half hour. I had unpacked Tessa's things and put them into their right place or I'd hear about something tomorrow. "Where do you think they are?" Aaron asked.

"I honestly have no clue." My eyes wandered to each face at the party. Finally, I spotted Carter sitting on a tree log with Tyler beside her. That's weird. She hated him, at least that's what I thought. I watched as Tyler got up to leave. The two of us walked up to her and sat down on each side. "Since when did you start talking to Tyler Lockwood?"

"Since like an hour ago." Carter took a swig from her beer. "He's actually quite the conversationalist."

"Or he wants to just get in your pants." Aaron chimed in.

Carter squinted her eyes at him. "When did you get here?"

"A little bit ago with Wren."

She seemed to be in deep thought as if not paying attention to anything we said. I finally let out a huge laugh. "Oh my god. You're drunk."

"Am not." She burped, causing me to laugh again. "I swear I only had one beer."

"I know for sure you're not a lightweight. You've had to had at least...six."

"Nope. I'm not drunk, just happy." Carter said gazing at me with a smile.

Aaron held up three fingers. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

Carter snapped her head back, glaring at him. "I wasn't expecting a pop quiz..." She poked at his arms. "...Mr. Muscles."

"Okay, you're going home." I took a hold of her arm.

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Ugh, fine." Carter stood up after throwing her bottle of beer into the fire. The flames magnified, making me jump back.

"Carter!" Aaron and I both said it in unison.

The blue eyed girl didn't seem to care as she stumbled off towards the car.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV  
**_

Stefan had just left me so now I stood under a pavilion just outside of the forest. I watched as he emerged once again only to be sidetracked by Caroline. Minutes later he was by my side again.

"I was wondering who abducted you, but now I know." I stated, looking over at the shocked blonde that stood there.

"She like that with all the guys?"

"I wouldn't know. I just met her yesterday."

Stefan chuckled. "Right. I forgot you moved here a few days ago."

I was going to say something else when I saw Jeremy go into the woods. He looked drunk or high...or both. We didn't formally meet, but I liked Jeremy. He was a good brother to Elena, and I knew he was having a rough time. "You've got to be kidding me."

"What?" Stefan asked.

"Nothing. Hold on, I'll be back." I stopped him and took off after Jeremy. "Hey!" He ignored her at first. "Hey, Jeremy!"

"Who the hell are you and what do you want?" He asked, continuing our little venture through the forest.

"I'm Tessa. I'm a friend of Elena's. Look I just wanted to-" I watched as Jeremy tripped and fell on top of a body. It was Vicki. Damn it. How could I forget this?

Jeremy looked back and forth between me and the bloodied girl. "Oh my god, it's Vicki!"

I just stared down at her with a look of surprise and disgust on my face. Blood wasn't my best friend. I usually barfed if it was in sight.

Jeremy picked her up after Vicki started gasping and we took her to where the party was being held. "Somebody help!" I screamed, causing everyone to rush towards us. I never thought that I'd be in this situation. It was the first time I ever saw someone in a near death accident. Holy crap! This was actually happening! I should've done something earlier, I should've remembered this instead of playing around with my own fantasies that were finally coming to life.

Looking up, I saw Stefan turn around and walk away.

* * *

_**Third Person POV**_

Stefan ran upstairs to his room. He was in total and complete shock. It wasn't him this time. Who could it have been then? Wasn't he the only vampire in Mystic Falls? A crow interrupted his thoughts as it flew through opened doors that lead onto a balcony. Sensing a presence, Stefan gritted his teeth and turned around to see his brother standing there with a smirk on his lips. "Damon."

"Hello, brother."


	4. Pilot Part 3

_**Third Person POV**_

"Crow's a bit much. Don't you think?" Stefan asked his brother in an annoyed tone.

"Wait until you can see what I can do with the fog." Damon told him after looking at something sitting on a table.

"When did you get here?"

His brother started moving around the room, looking at different diary as books on shelves. "Well I couldn't miss your first day of school." He looked at the spines of books before turning back to Stefan. "Your hair's different - I like it."

"It's been fifteen years, Damon..." Stefan began but was cut off by Damon.

"Thank god. I couldn't take another day of the nineties." The raven haired said, taking a few steps back to marvel at his brothers bedroom. "That horrible grunge look did not suit you. Remember, Stefan, it's important to stay away from fads."

"Why are you here?" Stefan asked, his voice getting louder by the second.

"I missed my little brother." Stefan could tell Damon was lying. He could see right through him. Damon was just back in town to toy with innocent people that would soon become his next victim. Unlike Stefan, Damon fed on humans and loved to play with them before sinking his teeth into their jugular.

"You hate small towns. They're boring...there's nothing for you to do." Stefan mentioned matter-of-factually as he watched his brother play with something in his hands that he had stolen off a book shelf.

Damon smirked. "I've managed to keep myself busy."

"You know you left that girl alive tonight. That's very clumsy of you."

Stefan watched as his brother had a worried, but not surprised, look on his face. "That could be a problem, for you."

"Why are you here now?" Tons of questions filled Stefan's head. He was worried about the humans living in his house with Damon around. He didn't want his brother to lay a hand on Tessa, Wren, and Carter. Even Aaron.

"I could ask _you_ the same question, however, I'm fairly certain your answer will be summed up into one little word - Tessa." Damon watched as Stefan gritted his teeth. He decided to step back and take in his brothers collection of books and stories while his brother took all this in.

* * *

Elena stood there beside Tessa, watching as the ambulance took Vicki to the hospital with Matt tagging along. She gripped the edge of the pavilion in thought. It was then that Bonnie came up to the two girls. "Hey." Bonnie started. "We're going to go mainline coffee and wait for news."

Elena nodded at her friends statement. "I have to take Jeremy home."

Bonnie looked at Tessa before talking to Elena in a small voice. "Elena, there's no way I'm psychic, I know that, but whatever I saw - or I think I saw - I have this feeling.."

"Bonnie, what?

"That it's just the beginning."

* * *

"She took my breath away - Tessa - Her, her sister, and Elena are dead ringers for Savannah, Celina, and Katherine." Damon taunted. "Is it working, Stefan, being around her, being in her world? Does it make you feel alive?"

"She's not...Savannah."

"Well let's hope not. We all know how that one ended. Tell me, when's that last time you had something stronger than a squirrel?"

Stefan scoffed with judgement in his eyes. "I know what you're doing, Damon, and it's not going to work."

"Yeah, come on." Damon hit Stefan in the shoulder, making his brother look him dead in the eyes. "Don't you crave a little? Let's do it - together. I saw a couple girls out there. Or let's cut to the chase let's just go straight for Savannah or Celina." Damon threw another punch only this time to see Stefan in complete rage.

"Stop it!" Stefan shoved Damon away.

"Imagine what their blood tastes like!"

Stefan looked away, veins showing around his eyes and his eyes turning red at the thought. Despite Damon's torment, he managed to shake the feeling away of digging his fangs into either of the sisters throats. "I said stop!" Stefan used all his speed and power to throw his brother and he out the window and onto the pavement below. He groaned when he got back up.

"I was impressed." Damon said from a few feet behind him. He didn't seem fazed by the fact he was just thrown out a window. "I'd give it a six - you missed some style - but I was pleasantly surprised. Very good with the whole face rah, rah, rah thing. It was good." Damon tried his best to imitate his brothers growl the best way he could.

Stefan approached his brother. "Yeah, it's all fun and games, Damon huh? But wherever you go people die."

"That's given."

"Not here." Stefan held his ground, unable to refuse to lose to this argument. He didn't want his brother back in town. He was worried that Mystic Falls may get the wrong idea with all the animal attacks going on. "I won't allow it."

Damon tilted his head in a smirk. "I take that as an invitation."

"Damon, please. After all these years can't we just give it a rest?"

"I promised you an eternity of misery. I'm just keeping my word."

"Stay away from Tessa!" Stefan pleaded. She was so far his friend and wanted to be more with her and with Damon in town that may be impossible.

Damon ignored his pleas and looked down at Stefan's hand. "Where's your ring?" He noticed his brothers shocked expression and soon laughed. "Oh...suns coming up in a few hours and then poof - ashes to ashes." After a few moments of silence, Damon pulled it out of his pocket and threw it at his brother. "Relax it's right here." Stefan placed it on his finger and before he knew it, Damon had him by the throat and threw him into a garage. "You know better than to think you're stronger than me. You lost that fight when you stopped feeding on human blood. I wouldn't try it again." A sound emerged from the boarding house, causing Damon to smile. "I think we woke our house guests up." Without another word, Damon turned on his heels and made his way back inside.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

I sat on my bed taking some notes as I studied for my history test that was in a few days. I had just gotten home around thirty minutes ago to find Carter and Wren asleep while Aaron was listening to music and doing the same as I. I looked up to see Stefan standing in my doorway.

"Hey." Stefan began, taking a few steps into the room. "I hope I wasn't bothering you. I just needed to know if you made it home safely."

"Yeah. I'm fine." I said, closing my textbook and throwing the notebook and pencil down. I stared up at Stefan with a smile on my face. "I have to say I suck at history. Mr. Tanner is so...frustrating."

Stefan only nodded and sat at the edge of my bed. He looked around at the rich red walls that had a dresser in the corner propped up against it with a few book cases here and there. He looked over at me. "Do you like to read?" He got up and chose a book before handing it to me.

"Wuthering Heights by Ellis Bell." I've read it before as a school project and fell in love with the book. "Thank you. I didn't even notice you had this book. It's one of my favorites."

Stefan cracked a smile. "Mine too."

We then spoke all night about books, poetry, and all the great things in life.


	5. The Night of the Comet Part 1

_**Carter's POV**_

My alarm clock went off, signaling yet another day of school. It wasn't until I opened one eye to notice I was a few hours late. _A few hours late? _I jumped out of bed and hurried around the room until I was dressed in dark jeans, a plain black V-neck shirt, and my combat boots. I quickly grabbed my things and went down stairs, into the kitchen. What I found was none other than Damon Salvatore. He was leaning against the counter with a drink in his hands, probably bourbon. He didn't notice me until I cleared my throat.

"Ah." Damon smirked. "You must be…Carter?"

I nodded shyly, making my way to the fridge and searched for something to snack on in a hurry. I had to get to school or else I wouldn't know what to do with myself, but then again I hated the school here and everyone in it so I guess a few more minutes wouldn't hurt.

It surprised me that the freezer, along with the fridge, was packed full of human food. Maybe it was for Zach, I guess I wouldn't know. I found toaster waffles, took them out and put them into the stainless steel toaster on the countertop. When I popped them back in, I noticed that Damon was staring at me. I wouldn't say anything. I didn't want to.

"You're quieter than I thought." He mused with a chuckle. "Someone told me you were the life of the party, a real talker." He watched me as I gave him a raise from my eyebrow. "Oh, I'm Damon, by the way." He plastered a fake smile onto his face as he made his way over to me with an outstretched hand.

I didn't shake it though. The popping sound from the toaster shifted my gaze to anything but him. I hated Damon Salvatore and didn't want to be anywhere near him. I quickly got my waffles and put them on a plate before searching for some syrup, but came up empty handed. With a grunt, I sat down and ate my waffles without another word to the raven haired man. Damon did sit down with me, however, and just kept drinking his booze.

"You know…" Damon began as I cringed. Did he ever stop talking? "…I happen to adore blondes." He was trying to seduce me, and it didn't work. Could I just have the guts to kick him from under this table? I would too, but he was a vampire so cross that idea out.

I watched as he tried his hardest to make me hold his gaze for more than a minute. He was going to compel me, I knew it. I rushed through my food and made sure not to look at him anymore than I had. Before I could stand up to wash off my plate, his hand grasped my wrist, holding me down in my sitting position.

"Get your hands off me." I bit out before trying to pry his hand from my wrist. He was holding it a little too tightly. "I said-" Accidentally, I looked up at him, blue to blue.

"Said what?" Damon asked, smirking a bit before compelling me. "You and I are going to have so much fun together, and you're going to like it."

I repeated what he said before he made me follow him up the stairs and into his master bedroom. My thoughts were running wild with just those simple words imprinted on my brain, hoping – in the back of my mind – that his would all be over soon.

* * *

_**Wren's POV**_

"Originally discovered over 500 centuries ago it hasn't been above Mystic Falls in over 145 years." Mr. Tanner lectured the students about the comet that was said to be going over the sky tomorrow night. It was a huge celebration in Mystic Falls. "Now the comet will be its brightest right after dusk during tomorrow's celebration…" He paused, looking over at my sister and Stefan – who were actually staring at each other in a lustful gaze. I don't know what happened between them last night, but whatever it was had to be something good. "Are we bothering you? Mr Salvatore…Miss Fields?"

Tessa shook her head lightly, watching as Mr. Tanner walked back to his desk and to the chalkboard, but before he could write anything, the bell rang.

I jumped out of my seat and joined Aaron after we got into the hallway. "Hey, did you wake up Carter this morning?" I asked, worry in my eyes. Carter hadn't been to school at all during the day and Aaron said he woke her up.

"Yeah, but you know how she is. She'll do a little groan and say something like 'okay' and then fall right back to sleep. So I gave up on the third try." Aaron laughed as I punched him lightly on the arm. "Hey, watch the muscles. These are my money makers."

"Oh yeah, _tons _of girls just fall to your feet to see you flex." I joked as we turned a corner. I spotted Caroline and Bonnie walking together, and I figured they were talking about witches or that maybe Caroline saw Damon last night. I wished I could tell her about what would happen if she saw Damon, but I knew I couldn't.

I stopped at my locker and opened it up to place my books inside. Aaron leaned against the locker beside mine, smiling. "It's Carter's fault. She doesn't know when to not stay up late."

"She was up last night?" I asked, quirking a brow.

"Yeah, you didn't hear her? I walked into her room to see her painting and throwing things into the trash bin. She was like sleep painting or something."

"Sleep painting?" I laughed. "Sure – that's what it was."

"You never know. This is Mystic Falls." Aaron gave me a weird look as if saying that there are a lot of weird things that go on in this town. And there was. There were vampires, werewolves, doppelgangers, and even witches. Not an average town if you ask me.

After getting my bag and filling it up, I threw it over my shoulder and made my way down the hall with Aaron by my side.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

Here we were, sitting at a table outside the Mystic Grill folding flyers for the celebration tomorrow for that comet. I could honestly care less, but Caroline was forcing Wren, Aaron, Bonnie, Elena, and I to do this. Still no word from Carter and my suspicion grew.

"Well I was talking to Grams and she says that the comet is a sign of impending doom. The last time it passed over Mystic Falls, it was locked to death; so much blood and carnage that it created a bed of paranormal activity." Bonnie told us all as if it didn't matter if the whole world knew that her Grams was crazy – or just a very logical witch.

"Mmm…yeah." Caroline agreed with sarcasm. "And then you poured Grams another shot and she told you about the aliens." Her gaze then set on me. "And then what?" I had begun to tell them all about what happened between Stefan and I the night before since they were so interested.

"So then nothing…" I said, clearly irritated by the topic, but smiled anyway.

Caroline frowned as if not believing me. "You and Stefan just talked – all night? There was no sloppy first kiss or touchy-feely of any kind?"

"Nope, we didn't go there."

"Not even a hand shake?" The blonde was just filled with questions, wasn't she? Sometime Caroline had annoyed me in the first season, making her unbearable. "I mean, Tessa, we are your friends. You are supposed to share the smut." It felt good to finally be considered as a friend by these people, these characters on my favorite TV show. I felt like this was supposed to be home all along.

"We just talked for hours." I shrugged, folding another flyer before setting it in the pile. Aaron was sitting to the left to me while Wren sat on my right. She was writing things down on a notepad on what to bring to the party tomorrow, and she was getting quite a lot of things. The three girls were sitting across from us, listening intently on Caroline's wordplay.

"What is with the blockage?" Caroline insisted. "Just…I don't know…jump his bones already." This made Wren laugh and Aaron cough up the drink he'd been sipping endlessly on. Bonnie gave Caroline a look while Elena sat there quietly. "Okay it's easy. Boy likes girl, girl likes boy – sex."

I mimicked her smirk, folding the last paper. "Profound." But then it dawned on me. I really did want to do that – sort of. I mean, I didn't want to jump the gun here since he and I just met; though I couldn't shake the feeling he gave me. I finally dropped the paper and grabbed my stuff, sharing a smile with Wren as if getting where I was going with this.

"Where are you going?" Elena asked, with a smile tugging at her lips.

I had to think up a lie. Carter was probably somewhere in the boarding house, drained of blood – okay, I'm exaggerating, but it was a good excuse. "I have to be somewhere…well, the boarding house. I'm going to search for Carter to see what she's been up to all day."

"Okay, sure." Wren rolled her eyes playfully, causing me to send her a glare.

"I am not going to do it with Stefan. I'm not that kind of person."

Wren turned her head to the side to say something to the girls. "Innocent, as charged."

I balled up a piece of paper, throwing it at her before turning on my heels, but Wren stopped me. "Wait, let me go with you. If Carter is in a mood, you'll need me as back up. You know how she gets." I did wait and when she had her bag on her shoulder, we set out on our little journey.

* * *

"Carter?" I yelled while stepping into the house. It looked the same and I saw Stefan's bag sitting on a chair near the entrance. This made me more worried. "Carter?" I looked over at Wren who too was beginning to feel uneasy. "Where is she?" I asked quietly before turning around. It was then that a crow flew in at us, causing me to duck down.

Wren didn't though. She was standing face to face with Damon as I stood back up. He was watching her like a hawk, a smile at his lips. "Oh my god." Wren stated.

"You two must be the sisters…Tessa and Wren." His gaze lingered on my sister before holding out his hand to her. She shook it, and I didn't. I knew better. "I'm Damon, Stefan's brother."

"He didn't tell us…" Wren stared at him still with an open mouth. She really liked Damon – a lot so I hoped she didn't screw this up for us.

"Stefan's not one to brag." Damon added. "Please, I'm sure Stefan…and Carter will be around in a second."

I crossed my arms, feeling brave enough to question him. "Do you happen to know where she is?" His glare pierced through me like daggers, he didn't like me already. _Great, _I thought before hearing the sound of footsteps padding down the hall, stopping right behind me. I turned around to see Carter standing there; her hair was done up in a high pony tail and she had on her PJ's. I gave her hug without thinking twice.

"Oh my god! Where the hell have you been? We've been wondering about you all day." I almost started crying, but contained the emotional side of me. With my arms finally off her, I took notice of the patch on her neck, a bandage. "What happened?" Fear washed over me. Damon had to have done this. Though I knew I couldn't confront him.

"I've been here all day, obviously." Carter stated with a smile. "Oh, this?" She pointed at the thing on her neck. "Animal attack. Crazy, I fell back asleep and woke up in the forest. Must have been my sleep walking."

"Carter, you don't sleep walk."

"Yeah, I do. I think I should know what I do while I sleep." Her eyes met with Damon's, smiling at him slightly before skipping off to the hall. On her way she mumbled a 'hi' to Stefan and that's when he walked into the room. He didn't look happy.

"Guys." Stefan said with no emotion in his voice. His eyes were locked on Tessa, but I know he was talking to all of us. "I didn't know you'd two be back so early."

"I know." I started. "I should've called if I'd known you were having…brotherly bonding time or whatever." I tried to make up the best excuse I could muster up.

"Oh don't be silly." Damon said from behind me. "You two are welcome in and out at whatever time. You guys do live her after all." He walked up beside me, Wren too. "You know, I should really get out that family photo album, it's the least I can do. Since you guys need to get to know us brothers better. Or family videos, but I have to warn you…he wasn't always suck a looker."

Damon was trying to be funny but I cringed at his attempt. Wren was beside him and chuckled a bit under her breath.

"You two can go now." Stefan scolded while his eyes were still on his brother.

I happily obliged while pushing past him, only to hear Wren bid a goodbye and a nice to meet you to Damon._ God, her and her choice of men_. Soon she joined me as we got to the top of the stairs. Wren was cradling her hand in her other as she gazed upwards.

"He kissed my hand."

I rolled my eyes, grabbing her and pulling her into my room. "We have to figure out what to do. He obviously has done things to Carter-"

"Carter is here? I didn't see her."

"Probably because you were too lost in your own damn universe to even notice that our friend is indeed alive, but bitten."

This caught Wren's attention. "_Bitten_? Oh wow...did Damon…"

"It seems like it. He must've gotten to her like he would've in the show to Caroline." Actually, a thought dawned on me; would this mean that in season two Carter would turn into a vampire like Caroline would and remember the compulsion or what? I didn't fret about it too much though because a knock on the door got our attention.

"Hey." Carter walked inside with a scarf around her neck and looked decent enough to go out and do something. "What's with the looks?"

Wren and I shared a look before turning towards her. "Damon…fed on you, and may have done other things…but he compelled you to forget." I told her as a frown appeared on her face.

"What?"

"Yeah." Wren stated. "Damon did exactly what he did to Caroline to you. We just wanted you to know."

Carter's eyes started watering, making us hurry up to hug her. We hated seeing her cry, and it was very rare to in fact. She was a tough cookie that knew how to keep from showing her emotional side. "I can't believe this. He…he's a monster."

"We know, Carter…we know." Wren said and I looked at her in shock. Maybe it she was realizing that Damon was indeed a monster.

We just had to wait until tomorrow to say anything to him.

* * *

**Author's Note: I just wanted to say that Carter is not going to be a victim of Damon from here on out. She'll try her hardest to stay out of his way while he actually chooses another person to play with. Caroline, obviously. I hope you guys liked this chapter and next we'll finish up The Night of the Comet.**


	6. Night of the Comet Part 2

**_Wren's POV_**

I pushed through the crowd with a smile on my face as Tessa clung to my side. I was really surprised at the outcome. Everyone in Mystic Falls had attended and to be honest, I didn't blame them. It was just a cute little celebration that I was happy I could've came to.

"Hey." Caroline approached us with three candles. "I got you a candle." She handed me one before handing the other to my sister. She decided to hang out with us for the rest of the night because the blonde couldn't find Elena or Bonnie.

"Thanks." I smiled before searching for someone to light it for me. Off in the distant I saw Aaron talking to a group of girls. He was known to get the ladies, and I couldn't help but laugh. He was charming and highly attractive, and I don't know how we all became friends. Maybe because our parents grew up with each other and then we all grew up alongside one another.

Tessa was no longer clutching to my arm. I looked over and saw she was now hanging out with Stefan. Her and I were still a little shaken up at the fact Stefan's brother had manipulated Carter. We didn't approve of it, but we knew staying here would have consequences. We just had to learn how to deal with them.

"Have your eyes on anyone here yet?" Caroline asked, pulling my eyes away from the duo that were in an awkward stance.

"Oh, no." I said before thinking of Damon. I didn't love season one Damon, but I couldn't get those blue eyes out of my head. "You?" I was a huge fan of Caroline and Tyler - they were mean't to be.

"Nobody, but I do have my eyes on a certain black haired man with the most blue eyes I've ever seen."

Damon. This caused me rolled my eyes. I couldn't stop her from going to him. It was her choice and I didn't want to screw up the storyline. "Caroline, I think you should really focus on people you actually know. Do you even know this guy?"

Caroline bit her lip. "No, but I will get to know him."

"I'm just looking out for you, okay? Why not focus less on boys and more on school or friends?"

"And who gave you the right to lecture me?" Caroline hissed, backing away to join Tyler, Bonnie, and Elena who were sitting down at the nearest picnic table. I sighed, knowing I should've kept my mouth shut.

* * *

**_Aaron's POV_**

I laughed at something this girl, Cassidy, had said. She was quite the comedian and I admired that. She had long black hair that ended at her hips and brown eyes that I could get lost in. She and her friends seemed to be hitting on me and they were oblivious to the actions, but I couldn't complain.

"So, Aaron, are you new to Mystic Falls?" Cassidy's friend asked.

"Yeah. I just moved into the Salvatore boarding house the other day." No point in lying to them.

Cassidy's brows knitted together. "You live with the Salvatore family?" I nodded. Did she know them by any chance or what? "Wow, I didn't know that. I'm from the Fell family. Logan is my uncle."

Logan Fell? I've heard the girls bitch about him when they were watching this season. Apparently he was a bad guy.

"Right." I watched as Carter sat down in the grass in the distance. Wren and Tessa filled me in on what happened earlier and I hadn't gotten the chance to speak to her yet. I could tell by her puffy red eyes that she had been crying. "Hey, can I catch up with you guys later? I have someone to talk to." Before they could protest, I hurried off to my friend. She had a lit candle in her hand and was gazing at the stars and comet flying by slowly. "Carter?"

Carter looked up at me with a sad smile on her face. "Hey."

I fell to her side with a smile on my face. Hopefully I could make her night better. "You know...I didn't take you for a crier."

"I cry. I have feelings, Aaron."

"I know that. What I mean is - you're a strong person. You've gone through your mom leaving you and having to go through so much with your dad in the aftermath...you never once let a tear leave your eyes." I sighed.

Carter didn't looked at me as I said this. I could tell she was on the verge of crying. The way her lip quivered and how she kept blinking repeatedly made me pull her him to a warm hug. She and I are like brother and sister. I have to protect her. It's like an instinct even though I'm an only child like she. Well, she was an only child now. She did have an older sister, but she ran away when we were both really young.

"I don't want to cry, Aaron." Carter sobbed into my shoulder. "I hate looking weak. Damon did this to me...he used me and I couldn't do anything about it and now Caroline's going to go through it."

"Hey, hey." I grabbed her chin, causing her to look at me. "You are not weak. As for Caroline, that's her choice and you can't interfere."

"Aaron..." Her voice cracked which made me look around for anybody that we knew. I couldn't find Wren or Tessa though. Same goes for the Mystic Falls gang.

After a few moments I managed to get Carter up and got her to contain herself before approaching the Grill. As we got there we saw Matt talk to Stefan.

"Hey, have you seen my sister?" Matt asked the vampire.

"No, sorry." Stefan shook his head.

"We can't find her. She's missing."

Stefan hesitated. "Uh...I'll keep an eye out for her."

It looked like Vicki was missing. Not that I cared; though by the way Carter looked at me I knew she knew something. I decided to just let it go as we walked inside.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

Vicki was found and now I was standing outside watching the sky with Stefan beside me. He and I didn't get to talk that much after I ditched him earlier. I shouldn't have done that, but I couldn't stop myself.

I sighed, turning to him. "I'm sorry...for the way I treated you earlier."

"It's fine." Stefan said with little emotion in his voice.

"No. It's not okay." I said before tucking a strand of hair behind one ear. "Life has been crazy over the past few days. I mean, us four just got here out of the blue and now...there's animal attacks everywhere and my own friend was attacked herself. I just...it's confusing and all I ask for is just one day, one night to just be normal again." I thought living in The Vampire Diaries would be a gift, but it was also a curse. It was fun and all things that are fun have to have their downsides and living in a supernatural world was that downside. "I just want to know what's going on, you know?"

"Yeah..." Stefan said. I wanted him to come out and tell me and with each minute that ticked by, I felt more betrayed to say the least. As we kept staring at each other, I felt myself get this pit of butterflies in my stomach. He eased his head down towards mine and I could feel my heartbeat quicken. This was it; I was going to kiss Stefan Salvatore.

Finally, our lips met and I moaned softly. His tongue darted between my lips, seeking entrance. How could I say no? Our tongues battled for dominance as he clutched my face, me doing the same. This kiss was the best I ever had.

Soon we untangled ourself from our embrace and stared at each other. I smiled like a goofball before Stefan laughed. "We should probably get back inside...wouldn't want your friends worrying or something." He said as he led the way I followed him back inside with the smile still plastered on my face.

* * *

**Author's Note - Hey guys! This chapter was sort of short, but I hope there's something big next chapter. If you liked please make sure to leave a review, favorite, or follow c:**


	7. Friday Night Bites Part 1

**_Wren's POV_**

For the past hour, Tessa was indulging in a little 'me time', which consisted of her retelling some important events that she was involved in. With a goofy smile on her face, she kept reminiscing on the previous night; her kiss with Stefan and how it was "magical". I tried my hardest not to laugh at how she described his lips. Supposedly they were soft and luscious - I think I'm going to barf.

We were sitting outside eating breakfast at the Mystic Grill. We had an hour until we had to be to school so we took the opportunity to get ourself some food. Aaron declined our offer, saying he would much rather sleep in until there was at least ten minutes until we left for school. Carter, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found. Tessa and I assumed Damon had snatched her up, but we remembered that he was with Caroline; probably draining at least a few pints of blood from her body. It was sad really, even though Caroline really wasn't my favorite character in the first season. When her vampire side came into view, it was then that I switched from Katherine to Caroline. In all honesty, I was a huge sucker for the big bad villains. That's why I had a fascination with the doppelganger, and maybe Damon too because he was indeed a huge antagonist.

"Are you even listening to me?" Tessa asked as I stared at some cars driving by. No, I wasn't, but it wouldn't be the first time I ever _didn't _listen to her. It shouldn't surprise her.

"No. If it means anything, I did listen to you when you were talking about how Stefan's lips were just _oh so _magnificent." I made a voice that made Tessa cringe slightly, turning away to finish her meal that laid out in front of her. "Oh, come on. I was only kidding. You have a right to fill me in on every little detail. This is Stefan Salvatore we're talking about - your all time crush."

Tessa rolled her eyes as she took another bite of her pancakes. I fought the urge to talk further with her, and soon decided against it to finish off my meal. I ordered a waffle, eggs (scrambled), a few pieces of bacon, and a glass of orange juice to top it all off. My sister had the opposite; pancakes, eggs (sunny side up like she always loves), sausage, and a coffee. I remembered this time where Tessa went on a strict vegetarian diet. It didn't last since she had to have meat in her life and of course dairy products. She loved ice cream.

We sat there in silence. The only thing that could be heard was the tapping of metal against ceramic and the sound of glass against the table. I picked at my food before looking up at the now sunny-ish sky. The sun was still in the middle of rising and it the sky would soon turn to it's blue hue.

"You ready?" Tessa asked which tore my gaze from above. I looked back with a smile. Her food was gone. I still had half of my food still on my plate.

"Yeah." I sighed and grabbed my bag from the seat to my left, placing a twenty on the table before getting up from my spot. It was then that I caught eye of a guy in a Grill uniform, smiling at me. I smiled back on cue as if it was a habit.

"He's checking you out." Tessa stated in my ear. She was now standing right beside me, causing me to flinch a bit at her closeness. "If I were you - I'd tap that."

I gritted my teeth while slapping her on the forearm. "Tessa." The guy was now approaching us with a bus tub in hand. He had light brown hair and brown eyes. He was really cute, but not Damon Salvatore cute. On his name tag, it confirmed his name was Jake.

"Hello, ladies." He started placing the plates and glasses into the tub. He kept his eyes on me for a few moments before putting the silverware into it. "You two new here?"

"Um..." I started, feeling a bit at loss for words.

Tessa, being the great sister she was, decided to step in. "We are. We're actually staying at the boarding house a few minutes from here. We actually have to get to school." She checked her phone for the time. "Come on, Wren." She tugged on my sleeve.

"High schoolers? Wow, that makes me feel incredibly old. I'm Jake. I go to Whitmore." He must've been talking about college. A college guy - looking at _me__. _

"Wren." My sister hissed from my side. I looked back at her after blinking a few times. "School. You know, education, shitty lunches - the whole nine yards."

"Right...right." I coughed after looking at Jake. "It was nice to meet you, Jake, but school calls me."

"Understandable." He took his notepad from his apron and jotted down his number and handed it to me. I smiled while being tugged away from him by Tessa.

* * *

School ended without any worries. The normal routine; go to class after class, eat lunch at an empty table in the corner of the cafeteria, go to the final classes of the day, and finally leave. Tessa and I stayed back when she insisted we watch Stefan's football practice. I sighed in frustration, but in the end allowed her to pull me to the spot yet again. We sat on the bleachers watching as each guy passed the ball around. I took notice of Bonnie and Elena in an embrace before quickly fleeing from each other. In surprise, I saw Carter emerge from the school in shorts and a t-shirt. No way. Carter Wilson was going to join the cheer squad. I sat there with my mouth open.

"What are you-" Tessa started but was cut off too in shock. "Whoa. I...what?"

"I know." I stated. It was odd to see our friend like this. Before she'd be against skipping around a field in revealing clothing, but something changed in her.

Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun and she looked pumped. I don't know if I should be concerned or...worried. Whichever one was worse I'd go with. I saw in the distance some guys checking her out. I sighed knowing that Carter always played hard to get so I wouldn't see either of them on her arm any time soon.

"I'm going to go and see what's going on." Tessa said before hurrying over to her.

* * *

**_Tessa's POV_**

I walked over to my blonde friend who was in a conversation with some other cheerleaders. She was laughing at something one had said. I didn't feel like interrupting, but my suspicion grew. "Carter?"

She turned towards me. "Oh, hey." Her smile was huge. Just yesterday she was balling her eyes out about what happened between her and Damon.

"What's going on?"

Her smile dissipated a bit. "I'm deciding to push everything to the side and joining some extra curricular activities. And Caroline assumed I could make it on the squad. I met her this morning before school to talk over some things." She paused at my raised brow. "Yes, she was completely oblivious to the fact she was just sucked almost dry only a few minutes before."

Good. That was good. Everything was going as planned - or plotted. We didn't screw anything up yet. _Yet_.

An 'oh my god' came from Bonnie who sat on the grass. Everyone watched as Caroline planted a kiss on Damon's cheek before jumping out of his Camaro. "Looks like I got the other brother." Her question was directed to me as if I really cared. "Oh my god! You actually came!"

"I did." Carter smiled before standing in line with the rest of them all.

I backed up and walked back to my fraternal twin. She was texting someone and I figured it was Jake. "Jake?" She nodded. I sighed and looked at Stefan who was smiling at me. I just wanted to, and I quote, jump his bones. Caroline's words of wisdom were really getting under my skin. I knew, however, that I didn't want to lose my V-card anytime soon. I valued it with my life, unlike Wren.

An hour passed and we were finally on our way home. Wren, Carter, and I were trotting down the street when my phone vibrated in my bag. I grabbed it. It was a text from Elena.

_Dinner tonight at my place. You, Carter, Wren, Aaron, and Stefan. I forced Bonnie into coming so don't be late ;) - E_

"Who's that?" Carter asked.

"I think we were just invited to dinner."

* * *

After much consideration, I managed to get Stefan to come with us to the dinner at Elena's house. We were finally seated and about thirty minutes into the dinner, things grew awkward amongst us all. I sat across from Carter, who sat beside Elena, who was across from Bonnie and Stefan was at the head of the table and Wren was at my left. Aaron was going to drop by sometime after dinner, saying he had things to do. Whatever those things were, I hoped they were legal.

Elena took a bite of her food before turning her attention to Stefan. "Did Tanner give you a hard time today?"

"Well he let me on the team so I must've done something right." Stefan chuckled under his breath, glancing at me with a semi-smile on his face.

"You guys should've seen Stefan today. Tyler threw a ball right at him-"

"Yeah, I heard." Bonnie interrupted rudely. So Stefan was with Elena this morning? I knew I shouldn't get jealous, but I was. I took a drink from my water before setting down with Carter's eyes on me. I just shook my head before drawing my gaze downward.

"Why don't you tell us all about your family?" Elena suggested after one long sip of her drink.

"Um...divorced, no mom, live with my dad."

"No, about the witches." Elena gritted her teeth a bit as she said this and I tried not to laugh. This seemed to make Stefan suspicious by the look he gave the brunette. "Bonnie's family has a lineage of witches. It's _really _cool."

"Cool isn't the word I'd use."

Stefan seemed interested as he looked from one girl to another. "It's certainly interesting. I know that there's celtic druids that migrated here in the 1800s."

"My family came by way of Salem." _Go figure, _I thought before chewing a bit too hard on my food. This dinner was a disaster. Nobody seemed interested in our day, except for Bonnie's crazy drunken grandmother and her assumptions of how witches actually existed. I knew they were in this world, but did she ever stop talking about it? Nobody cares, especially not me.

As they carried on at their end of the table, I made sure to spark a conversation with my friends. "So, girls, what do we have planned for the weekend?"

"I made the squad so I have cheer practice tomorrow and I have to go to the homecoming game." Carter said before focusing on her food.

"And I was thinking we could all attend it. It seems as though it's the only fun thing to do." I just nodded my head at my sister. I wanted to go too, but knowing what the night ended in made me think twice. I had to go and cheer Stefan on though.

The doorbells rang and all of us flinched a bit at the occurrence. Before Elena could answer it, I ran to it and blocked her way. "We should really not open the door."

"What are you talking about?" Elena asked with her brows in a confused look. "Just move, Tessa."

"No."

"Tessa." I heard Wren from behind Elena and bit my lip before shuffling away. Elena opened the door with Caroline and Damon behind it. No surprise there.

"Surprise." Came from Caroline who held out a red velvet cake. She hurried inside, handing the dessert to her friend before awaiting Damon's entrance.

"Come on-" Elena started, but was cut off by Stefan. He stood there and I knew what would happen next.

"No, no. He can't stay. Can you Damon?"

"Come on, get in here." Caroline said, making sure to sneak a glare at Stefan.

Stefan hesitated, thinking up something. "We're just...finishing up."

"It's fine. Just come on in." Elena stepped back as Damon stepped over the threshold, causing us three girls to sigh in frustration. Great. This was going to be a _great _night.

* * *

**_Carter's POV_**

When dinner was over, I sat on the couch farthest from Damon. I hated him and his existence. I don't know what Wren saw in him.

I propped my head against my hand on the armrest as I listened into the conversation. "I cannot believe Mr. Tanner let you on the team." Caroline was so overjoyed I didn't believe her fake smile for a second. "Tyler must be seething. Good for you - go for it."

"That's what I always tell him. You have to engage, you can't just sit there and wait for life to come to you, you have to go get it." Damon added.

"Yeah, Elena wasn't so lucky today. It's only because you missed summer camp. God, I don't know how you're ever going to learn the routines."

"I'll work with her. She'll get it."

"I guess we can put her in the back and move Carter to the front." Caroline mused, thinking as Elena gave me a death stare. "Carter actually made the team. She has one hell of a flexibility, although with a few touch ups you'll be perfect."

I smiled. "Thanks, 'Care." Elena was still looking at me as if I was vomit.

"You're welcome. We could always use another blonde on the team." Caroline took a sip of coffee before setting it down on the coffee table. "I mean the only reason Elena can't keep up is because her parents died. She's just totally going through a blah faze. She used to be _way _more fun-" Elena shot her a look. "And I say that with complete sensetivity."

"I'm sorry, Elena." Damon started speaking. "I know what it's like to lose both your parents. In fact, Stefan and I have watched every single person we ever cared about die."

"We don't need to get into that now, Damon." I could tell by Stefan's tone that he was more than annoyed.

"You're right, 'Stef, I'm sorry. The last thing I want to do is bring _her _up." I saw Tessa look to her right at Stefan, whom she was sitting beside. I could tell something was off and this wasn't going to be like the episode. What it was exactly was a mystery. Stefan also looked away from Tessa, as if ashamed by what Damon had said. I just sat back and sipped my coffee nonchalantly, wishing the night was over.

* * *

**_ Tessa's POV_**

Instead of sticking around, I decided to make myself useful and help out with the dishes. Wren was by my side and I tried to fight back the tears. I didn't want Stefan to remember Katherine. I wanted it to be only me. That's probably selfish, but I could care less.**  
**

"One more." Damon said from behind us. Wren turned around to grab it, but Damon dropped it on purpose, only to catch it a few inches from the ground.

My sister laughed. "Nice save."

Damon observed her for a moment as I went back to filing the dishwasher. "I like you." I nearly dropped the plate. "You know how to laugh." He came up from behind me and started to help. "And you, you know how to make Stefan smile which is something I haven't seen in a very long time."

My lips ghosted a smile before handing him a dish. "Before...did you mean...Katherine?"

Damon looked at me with a raised brow, grabbing the plate and setting it into the bottom rack. "No. I was talking about Savannah - Katherine's sister." Savannah? What the hell! Who was that? I thought...wait Katherine had a sister? Okay, this was getting weird and I knew Wren was thinking the same thing by the look she gave me.

"How did she die?" Wren asked.

"A fire. Tragic, fire." Damon had no emotion in his voice as he closed the dishwasher.

I shared a look with my sister before focusing on Damon. "What was she like?"

Damon didn't answer for a moment. He was too busy looking at Wren to even comprehend what I was saying. "You're going to have to ask Stefan. I didn't have my eyes on her, but Celina. I know that all three of them were beautiful, much like you two in that department. They all had the same traits. All complicated and needy, but were also their own people. They weren't all that kind, though were very sexy and seductive. Mainly Katherine. Again, Stefan nor I had wanted her like she toyed with us."

"Did you guys date one, or two, or all three?" Wren's eyes widened at my question, as if it was life or death.

Damon chuckled. "Ask Stefan. I'm sure his answer differs from mine."

With his gaze on me, I turned my head and joined Wren who was now folding napkins. Her and I both wanted answers, but weren't sure on how to get them. Who were Savannah, Katherine, and Celina? They were sisters, obviously, that we had to figure out who and what happened to them.

It seems as though this episode had a bit of a plot twist. I just hope we figure out why.

* * *

**Author's Note - Alright, so that concludes the first part of Friday Night Bites. I was sort of conflicted on this chapter with the whole doppelganger thing, but I will clarify that Stefan loved Savannah, Damon loved Celina, and Katherine was sort of messing with both brothers on the sidelines. Favorite, follow, or review if you liked it. Also, I'd like to thank those that favorited and followed so far - along with the reviews - it may be a small number, but I really liked seeing those :)**


	8. Friday Night Bites Part 2

**_Third Person POV_**

Caroline, Stefan, and Carter were left alone in the living room. Caroline was talking to Stefan while Carter was on her phone, listening to what they were saying from across the room.

"That's a really nice scarf." Stefan said, causing Carter to laugh a bit.

"Oh, thank you. It's new." Caroline smiled, enjoying the little compliment.

Carter glanced up to see Stefan move toward the other blonde girl. "Can I see it? I mean, would you mind taking it off?"

"Oh, I can't."

"Why not? You okay?" Stefan could tell there was something underneath the scarf that Caroline was compelled to keep from wandering eyes.

Caroline shook her head, as if trying to think of something to say. "Um...all I know is that I can't take it off."

"What are you two kids talking about?" Carter's head snapped up at the sound of Damon entering the room. He didn't acknowledge her presence, probably thought she went back to help with the dishes.

"I was just commenting on her scarf." Stefan pointed out, trying his hardest to lie.

Damon didn't believe it, and decided to talk to Caroline. "Hey, you know Tessa and them are finishing up the dishes. Why don't you go see if you can help?"

She laughed. "Does it look like I do dishes."

"For me?"

"Hmm...I don't think so." Caroline said which made Damon compel her. Carter couldn't hear what he said, but knew exactly what Caroline was going to do.

"You know, I think I'm going to go and see if Bonnie needs help in the kitchen." She grabbed her coffee and on her way out grabbed Carter by her wrist, pulling the two into the kitchen.

Both men watched as they left the room, and Stefan was not happy. "They are people, Damon. She's not a puppet. She doesn't exist for you amusement for you to feed on whenever you want to."

"Sure she does. They all do. They're whatever I want them to be, they're mine for the taking."

"Alright, you've had your fun. You used Carter and Caroline, you got to meet Wren. Good for you. Now it's time for you to go." Stefan was growing more irritated by the second. All he wished for was his brother to leave town so he didn't cause even more havoc.

Damon shook his head. "That's not a problem." He moved so he was now sitting in the chair instead of the armrest. "Because they live with us. I will be there night after night and do whatever I please to Wren, maybe even Tessa. That's because that's _normal _to me." He placed a hand on his brothers shoulder, being serious as he could be. They both heard the girls return and a knock at the door. With a smirk towards his brother, Damon sat back and waited for the night to be over.

* * *

**_Tessa's POV_**

_"Tonight wasn't so bad." I said to Stefan. We were both sitting on my bed looking through a book we'd found on a bookshelf. The night ended in complete simplicity and I was surprised that there wasn't a bloodbath._

_Aaron showed up later on and he got some leftovers and decided to stick around. He was just on his phone all night, texting someone. I wanted to know who it was because he usually wasn't this tech savvy. _

_"I had fun, actually. As shocking as that may seem." I smiled, looking up at Stefan. _

_"Mmm, that makes one of us." _

_I didn't want to talk about Damon, and I knew he'd be the topic of subject. "Well, at least we-" I was silenced by Stefan's finger at my mouth. He caressed my cheek before leaning in. Memories of the night before last filled my head as we kissed. I grabbed the back of his head as he pushed me down into the pillows. The kiss was getting heated every fast, but I couldn't complain. I pushed him over so I was on top, peeling my shirt over my head to reveal a red lace bra that I rarely ever wore. I ran a hand through my hair as Stefan did the same. This was it - we were finally going to do it. _

_The anticipation was horrible and I couldn't wait any longer. After Stefan got his shirt off, I took notice that it wasn't Stefan, but Damon. Fear crept within me as I screamed, jumping off the bed and into a nearby bookshelf._

I gasped, waking up in bed. It had all been a dream - or nightmare. My breathing grew heavier as I stepped out of bed and onto the wood floorboards. I couldn't sleep now and wanted to be close to Wren. She was my sister, after all, and could help.

* * *

**_Third Person POV_**

_...there must be a shred of humanity left inside my brother. Somewhere. I keep hoping, but how do I make him see it? And how do I protect...her...them?_ Stefan had written that in his diary and was now sitting back, looking over the journal entry with a wondering gaze. Finally, he turned his head to a small leather trunk perched on a bookshelf completed with other nicknacks. He grabbed it and took it back to his seat where he proceeded opened it up. Inside there were other papers that he had to shuffle through to find what he was looking for.

He grabbed the small antique box from the bottom and opened it. This was how he was going to protect her - Tessa.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

People were arriving quickly into the packed bleachers as others built a fire for their competitor mascot. I was talking to Carter through it all. She was actually excited for the game tonight and I was so happy for her. I had to help her get ready this morning; curling her hair and putting it into a nice sleek ponytail. Carter was my best friend, besides Aaron, and I was the girly genius so whatever they needed I'd be there for them.

"Oh, you look hot in your jersey." I stated with my eyes going up and down Stefan's torso. God, I just wanted to rip it off of him.

Carter snickered from beside me. "She says that to all the guys she wants to fu-" I cut her off by hitting her in the shoulder in warning. "Relax. It was a joke."

Stefan laughed. "Um, I hope this isn't too soon, but I, uh, wanted you to have this." He pulled something out of his pocket and held it up for me to see. It was the vervain locket. It was much beautiful in person.

"Wow, it's beautiful." I said as I took it from it's tiny box.

"It's something that I've had forever and I never wanted to give it to anyone until now." Stefan said, making my heart soar with flying colors. He was the absolute sweetest. "I'd very much like it if you wear it...for me...for good luck."

In the show I knew Elena would smell it, and I really wanted to know what it smelled like. Bringing it up to my nose, I smelled rose with a bit of something else laced in it. Probably vervain. "Is that rose that I smell?"

"No, it's a herb." I laughed. "It's nice huh?"

I nodded. "I love it." I turned around to let him clasp it around my neck. My long brown hair was swept to the side in a ponytail so there was no need for me to move it for him.

When I turned around, he looked down at me and all I could do was kiss him. Carter made a gagging sound from beside me. "Get a room." She joked as she left us in our little embrace. She was just jealous, I could tell.

We pulled away from each other and I watched as Stefan left to go join his football friends.

* * *

Everyone was gathered in a huddled circle; the cheerleaders, the players, the coach, and the other high schoolers that attended. I walked up beside my sister who was dressed in sweatpants and a hoody with her hair in it's short curls she always did in the morning. She had been feeling sick all morning and had a sort of stuffiness to her voice when she talked.

"You okay?" I asked, hoping to hear a good answer.

Wren shrugged as Mr. Tanner began speaking from a microphone. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! Let's be honest here, in the past we used to let other teams come into our town and roll right over us." The crowed booed. "But that is about to change." They now all cheered. I saw Carter wave a pom-pom in the air from where I was standing. "We have some brave new talent starring on offense and I'm going to tell your right now it has been a long time since I have seen a kid like this with hands like these. Let's give it up for Stefan Salvatore!"

I saw Tyler lean in and say something to Matt. He was most likely bullshitting Stefan like he did in the episode. Mr. Tanner continued to speak as I saw Tyler leave the herd of people. In the next moment, I heard fighting going on behind us. Jeremy was on the ground as Tyler kept pummeling him. Vicki was screaming and I had to roll my eyes.

I hurried to see Stefan grabbed Tyler by the wrist which he then punch Stefan in the stomach. It was no use.

"Jeremy, no!" Elena screamed as her brother jammed a broken half of a bottle into Stefan's hand. She hurried to his side as I aided Stefan.

"Oh my god, are you hurt?" I made a move to grab his hand, but Stefan kept it from me. "Is it deep?"

"No, no it's fine."

"How bad is it?" I finally grabbed his hand and opened it - only to reveal there was nothing but faded blood in his palm. "But I saw it..."

"He missed. It's not my blood. See? It's gone."

"No, I saw it. The glass cut your hand it was-"

"I'm okay." Stefan said. "Look, it's almost kickoff time so I'll, uh, see you after the game."

I nodded as he walked away from me. It hurt to know that he was lying to me, but I didn't know why since I already knew what he was. He just needed to be honest with me right from the get-go and we wouldn't have this problem.

A few minutes before the game, I walked over to where the cheerleaders were standing. "Tiki, can you please hold it up straight?" Caroline ordered. "Carter, can you please help Tiki?"

I made no move towards my friend, approaching Bonnie who said 'hey'. "Can I ask you a question and you give me a very serious no joke response?"

"Of course what is it?"

"Okay, I sort of listened into your conversation with Elena, but...the bad mojo, when you touched Stefan and had that reaction...?"

"You know what, forget about that. Elena's little dinner party totally won me over."

"No, Bonnie, seriously. What was it?"

"Did you see something? Or what?"

Bonnie hesitated. "It wasn't clear like a picture like today I keep seeing those same numbers I told you about; 8, 14, 22. When I touched Stefan, it was a feeling. And it vibrated through me and it was cold and..."

"And what?"

"It was death. It's what I imagine death to be like."

* * *

_**Wren's POV**_

I was leaning against our car, the Nissan Hyrbid, as the game went on. We had gotten it back earlier in the day and were very grateful. I knew that we should've left, but how could we? We're living in this dimension that we no longer have anybody else. Just ourselves. So what are we supposed to do with that?

I turned around, opened the trunk, and quickly grabbed something before shutting the door and turning around once again. I gasped when Damon came into view. He was standing very close to me. A little too close. "You scared me...wh-what are you doing here?"

"I'm hiding from Caroline." He whispered as if it was a secret.

"And why is that?" I whispered back.

"I need a break. She talks more than I can listen."

"That could be a sign." A sign that you should ditch Caroline and come to me. No, wait, what am I thinking? I can't go for the bad guy Damon. Never ever unless he changes.

"Well she's awfully young."

"Not much younger than you are."

Damon laughed. "I don't see it going anywhere in the bigger picture. She drives me crazy."

I didn't say anything for a long time. I didn't know how to defend Caroline since I barely knew her. Damon just stared at me for a long time with a smirk on his lips. "I see it, you know. You want me."

"Excuse me?" I asked with no hesitation in my voice.

"I get to you, you find yourself drawn to me, and I bet you think about me when you don't want to think about me." Damon took a step closer, pushing me up against the car. He was going to compel me, but I had no vervain like Elena did in the show. "And you want to kiss me." His pupils dilated as he leaned in.

My mind couldn't understand what was going on. It as like amnesia of some sort as his lips found mine. Somewhere in the back of my mind I was still my old self just watching as this went on. I did want this, but not this way. A second later I pushed him off me and slapped him. I managed to fight his compulsion. A little cheer went off in my head.

"Let's get one thing straight, Salvatore." I threatened, coming close to his face. "I don't know what your intentions are, but mine are far than getting seduced by _you_." I had a sick feeling return in my stomach so I had to leave quickly. "I am _not _Celina." Damon gave me a look before I left.

* * *

**Author's Note - I would like to mention that Mr. Tanner does die at the end of the episode, but I decided to not write it because it really wasn't _that _important to the chapter, you know?**

**Next time it's the episode Family Ties.**


	9. Family Ties Part 1

_**Carter's POV**_

My dream, my nightmare, kept me up all night. I had the same one repeating over and over again; a blurry haze of a forest and me standing in the middle of it with animals taunting me in a circle before finally taking their shot. I woke up an hour ago with sweat beading my forehead and gasping for air.

By now it was at least three in the morning. Glancing at the clock on the bedside table, I figured getting a drink of water would calm my nerves. My bare feet fell onto the wood paneling on the floor as I made my way to the hall. There were other people sleeping in the house which made me be extra quiet.

I tiptoed downstairs and into the kitchen. The lights flicked on and I grabbed a mug from one of the cabinets until finally getting water from the fridge. I must've been really thirsty because I drowned it all in one gulp. I went to pour some more when I heard someone walk up behind me. Figuring it was Damon, I snickered.

"For someone that hate my guts you sure do-" I turned around only to find a girl standing there in pajamas and slippers. I forced a gasp. It was the girl at the comet celebration, the one that was flirting with Aaron. Realization hit me. "Oh, uh...hi?" Aaron and she must've did some things last night, at least that's what it seemed. _Ugh, Aaron. _I chided in my head before forcing a smile onto my face.

Cassidy, if I remembered correctly, gave me a smile before proceeding to do the same. She grabbed a glass of water and sipped on it until finally making conversation. "You must be Carter." I nodded. "Aaron has told me tons about you. I'm Cassidy - Cassidy Fell."

I made a move to shake her now outstretched hand, but recoiled as if touching her would bring me death. A Fell. I hated that founding family, if I was being honest, only because they were the know it all goody-goodies who were rich, smart, and everything in between. Logan Fell really put a bitter taste in my mouth when I watched his episodes.

Cassidy gave me a look before her hand fell to her side. There was an awkward silence that lifted up into the air between us, causing me to pick at my fingernails and bite my lip and the sudden intrusion. After a few minutes, Cassidy finished off her water and gave me a smirk. "You know, I didn't think you were the quiet type."

"Neither did I." I muttered, watching as she turned on her heels and left the kitchen. I don't know why, but that girl gave me an odd feeling - one that I didn't at all like.

I placed my mug onto the counter before walking into the hall. I walked passed the parlor when I saw someone standing there. A girl; she had dark blonde hair and looked to be nineteen, two years older than I. She was staring at something behind me. The way she just stared at me gave me chills. The flames from the fireplace then erupted into the air, but the girl was unfazed.

"Who are you?" I asked with a wary tone. This didn't look good so far. Before I could react, her eyes glowed an amber color and she flashed her fangs at me. I couldn't even comprehend what I was doing as I sped off to my bedroom upstairs. I slammed the door and breathed heavily against it, my lungs exhaling as much as they could and thriving for more. My gasps turned out to be noisy raspy exhales.

I balanced myself on the balls of my heels and fell backwards onto the floor. I heard scratching from the other side of the door which hinted my suspicion that it wasn't a vampire. In the next moment, the door flew open and pieces of the wood flew everywhere. I was pined down against the floorboards, an animal against my chest and growling in my face. A vial stench came up its throat and into my face as it's drool fell onto me. Disgusting.

Others were around me as I screamed for Tessa, Wren, or mostly anyone. Nobody came to my rescue. I was entirely and utterly alone, but this was _my _battle. I had to fight this. I had to fight _it._

It's claws dug into my shoulders. I screamed in agony as it began doing more than just that. The others taunted me just like I had dreamed before. It took awhile before I finally drifted off to the land of unconsciousness. I knew what this was.

_Werewolf. _

* * *

A piercing scream came from my mouth as I woke up with tears streaming down my face. I was hurting all over and I couldn't take it as I woke up with the bed in a distraught mess and my hair tangled around my head. I continued crying as I heard people walk into my room. I couldn't see them that well as the water blurred my vision, although I suspected it was Tessa, Wren, Aaron, and Stefan. They looked at me with confusion and fear in their eyes.

"Carter?" Tessa approached the bed, but Stefan grabbed her forearm lightly, pushing her back before he came to the bed.

"No." I stated, backing away as much as I could. "No, no, no, no. Get away from me!"

"Carter." Stefan said softly. His eyes moved south, towards my hands that braced myself beside me and the bed sheets. I hadn't seen what they looked like other than the fact they were a huge mess at my feet.

"Oh my God." Tessa gasped and followed what he was looking at. I furrowed my brow before glancing down.

The bed sheets were covered in blood as well as my own nails that looked to have dug deep into something. Pain hit me once more as I moved my arms.

"Carter?" Wren said worriedly.

I cried as I saw there were deep claw markings on my shoulders after pulling down my tank top straps.

I hurt myself in my sleep.

* * *

_**Tessa's POV**_

"Scumbag, scumbucket..." As I walked into the Gilbert residence, that's the only thing I heard as I walked into the kitchen with Elena by my side. Apparently, tonight was this event at the Lockwood's that everyone would be attending. Elena had a old metal box in her hands that she set down onto the table in front of her as we took our seats.

"Who are you talking to?" Elena asked, polishing off a watch she grabbed from the container.

"Him." Jenna turned around and nodded towards the TV. It was Logan Fell. No surprise there.

"The news guy?"

"Also known as Logan Scumfell." Jenna said with a glare on her lips. "Did your mom ever tell you why I moved away from Mystic Falls?"

Elena laughed. "No way. You and him?" She wrinkled her nose in a gaze. "He's cute."

"He is not cute. There's nothing cute about him." Jenna turned off the television and turned towards us. "What are you guys doing with that?" She was obviously talking about the box.

"I got it from the safe deposit box. Mom told Mrs. Lockwood that she would loan it to the founder's council for their heritage display."

"Is that Grandma Beth's wedding ring?" Jenna held up an old antique ring from the box. It was pretty.

"Originally it great-great Grandma Mary's wedding ring."

I stayed quiet as Jeremy walked into the room. He gave me a look before approaching us and grabbing something from the box. "How much do you think this stuff is worth? You know, like on EBay?"

"You're not going to find out." Elena said as she took the pocket watch from Jeremy's fingertips.

"That stuff is Mom and Dad's, you can't just give it away."

"I'm not _giving it _away. It's called a loan, Jeremy." Elena pointed out with a tenseness to her voice.

The doorbell rang which made my head turn towards the door, my dark brown hair flying out in all direction as I got up from the chair and went to the door. I didn't know who it was, but as I opened it a smile grew across my face. It was Stefan.

"Hey." He said.

I pulled him into the house and took him to the stairs where I proceeded to kiss him. Within five minutes, we pulled apart with a smile on our lips. "Hey." I said with a laugh. "So, how's Carter doing?" I left her at the house with Wren and Aaron in hopes that we would figure out what was going on with her. She was pretty traumatized over it and couldn't stop shaking for awhile.

"She's...she's good." Stefan hesitated a bit, but I didn't pry. He acted like he knew something and was purposely not telling me a thing.

"She isn't is she?" I deflated with a whine in my voice. Stefan shook his head. "What the hell is wrong with her?"

* * *

_**Wren's POV**_

Loud pop music came from upstairs. I rolled my eyes at Aaron who sat across from me on the other couch in the parlor. Carter must've found some sort of iPod doc because that's the only way the music could be _that _loud. I shook my head, feeling a bit bad for the situation she was in. I was about to cry when I saw the state she was in, but I'm Wren Fields, I don't cry that easily.

I walked over to Aaron and took a seat beside him. "So, how was Cassidy last night?"

Aaron laughed. "You heard us?"

"I think the whole block heard you, but then again, nobody lives around here except for us in this house." I tried my hardest to fight the urge to laugh, although the way his cheeks flushed a red resulted in me bursting into laughter. He did too. "Next time, I suggest doing it at her place."

"Fine by me." Aaron shrugged.

I stopped laughing the moment I heard a loud crashing sound from Carter's room. "Are you...are you even serious about her - Cassidy? You guys barely know each other and you're already sleeping together, if I were you I'd slow it down."

"I don't know...it was sort of in the heat of the moment. We drank after the football game and then we came back here."

"Oh." That was all I could comprehend as I heard the sound of glass breaking. "I'm going to go and check on her." Aaron nodded. With a smile, I made my way upstairs to my friends room. I could hear soft crying from the other side of the door which broke my heart.

After opening the door, I saw Carter standing there with her back towards me. She was dressed in her sweatpants and tank top that she slept in. Her hair was done up in a messy bun and she was standing in front of paper on a easel. Glass from a vase was on the floor and paintbrushes and paint containers were spilled out across the floorboards.

"Carter?" I walked up to her and looked over her shoulder to see a painting of a werewolf on the white canvas. The messy strokes turned out to make an absolutely beautiful painting. One question picked at my mind; why was she drawing a werewolf?

She turned around with wet eyes and bags under them, hinting of her insomniac state. "I-I painted it...the picture." She turned around and started picking up everything. "I-sorry for the mess...I-I...I got a little out of control when I couldn't picture it in my mind...I sort of needed inspiration, you know?"

Biting my lip, I tore my gaze from the painting and focused on the now made bed. There were multiple paintings on the bed. From werewolves with orange tinted fur to ones with the blackest of blacks. Then there was one that really caught my eyes. It was a girl - Carter - with the right of her face painted beside the left of a werewolf's. My mouth opened a bit when Carter balled up all the pictures into one pile and threw them into the trash bin near the desk. "Carter-"

The blonde didn't say anything before she made a move to rip the fresh paining from its canvas, but I stopped her. "No. I want it." Giving me a look, she stepped back as I tore it myself. "Can I have the other ones too?" Carter didn't say anything which made me grab the balled up papers into my hands and leave the room. There was some kind of message behind the photos that really made me wonder.

Is my best friend a werewolf?

* * *

**Author's Note - Sorry for the lateness of this chapter and how short it is. This was part one of Family Ties, although it doesn't seem like it, but I assure you it was. Next chapter we'll see more from the episode and our four lovely OC's. **


End file.
